Fifty-two members of the Diplomatic Spouses of Israel Association (DSIA) visit Israel’s prime birdwatching site in the Upper Galilee with KKL-JNF.
Tuesday, March 6, 2018: After their 2-hour bus journey from Tel Aviv and Herzliya to the
Hula Lake Park in the Upper Galilee, the 52 visitors were keyed up and eager to start exploring. This was an unusual group because the members spoke different languages, and were neither citizens of Israel nor tourists. These were the life partners of foreign diplomats stationed in Israel and members of the Diplomatic Spouses of Israel Association (DSIA).
On-site to meet them at the visitors’ entrance to the Hula Lake Park was Aviram Zuk, head of KKL-JNF's Upper Galilee and Golan Region, who told them that because of the short time available, the park authorities would break from convention and allow the first part of the tour to be conducted by bus.
The group’s leader on this tour was
Susan Weiss, spouse of Austrian Ambassador to Israel Martin Weiss, and vice president of the DSIA. Weiss told her KKL-JNF hosts that the group was formed several years ago in order to help participants get acclimatized to their new residency in Israel.
“It is not easy for the spouse of a diplomat to land in a new country for several years, often with children, without knowing anybody, or the language or much about the country. We are here to help them get over those difficulties. We organize monthly lectures, Hebrew language classes, and trips around the country. KKL-JNF is extremely helpful in this. I myself, after having been a member of this group for over two and a half years, can safely say today that I know more about Israel than my ambassador husband.”
While travelling through the park, KKL-JNF’s
Aviram Zuk told them how early pioneers in Israel labored to dry out the malaria infested swamps in order to transform the region into a flourishing agricultural success.
“The recent partial restoration project, which was carried out in the 1980’s, has turned Hula Park into a great attraction for tourists, with bird watching sites, waterways full of fish, recreational areas in natural surroundings, animals, birds and a great selection of possibilities for outings on bicycles, in vehicles and on foot.”
As the bus passed a massive concrete building site, Zuk told them that this was the
Stephen J. Harper Hula Valley Visitors and Education Center under construction. He passed around a picture of what the site will look like when completed.
“The center’s remarkable design is aesthetic, functional and innovative. The facility will educate the public on the Hula Lake's local and migratory birds and wildlife through recreational and educational activities throughout the year, and will draw more
tourism to the Hula Valley and the surrounding Upper Galilee region.”
Victoria Barkagan of KKL-JNF‘s International Cooperation Department presented the visitors with an explanation on the role of KKL-JNF in Israel.
“Since its establishment in 1901, KKL-JNF has served as trustee in the name of the Jewish people over the Jewish lands of Israel. It purchased land and planted trees, in fact almost every tree you see in this country was planted by hand. Today as
KKL-JNF enters the 21st century, priorities have changed and the organization has become the country’s leading environmental body.”
The bus stopped at the Hula Botanical Garden where the passengers alighted and approached the lake to view and photograph birds. KKL-JNF Bird Ringer
Shai Agmon explained how the area has become a major bird migration station.
“Twice a year, no less than 1.25 billion birds of 390 species pass through the area. The importance of the site for these millions of birds as a resting and fueling station is crucial because they will later be flying over deserts. Migrating birds stop at the Hula to replenish the fat reserves in their body which will help them survive the arduous journey.”
While snapping pictures,
Nora Mihaylova, spouse of Bulgarian Ambassador Dimitar Mihaylov, said that this was her second visit to the Hula Lake Park.
“I was here last summer when there were not so many birds. I am so grateful to KKL-JNF for bringing us here today and devoting so much effort to take us to those special places to see the birds. I will come again soon with my husband, now that I know when to come and where to look.”
Seema Singh, spouse of the Indian Defence Attaché Gp. Capt. Tejpal Singh and board member of the DSIA said that she is extremely happy to be part of the group.
“To be honest, when we received the posting I knew very little about Israel besides the conflict and violence in Gaza and I was anxious. However once having arrived here I was pleasantly surprised. We are in Israel with our two daughters with whom we have travelled extensively throughout the world. Kripa is at university in Tel Aviv and Saher is in high school. As a mother I feel that this is one of the safest countries we have been in. The girls go out at night alone and I have no anxiety. That is a new experience for me.”
The group then boarded the special Hula Lake hideaway wagon and were driven to a field where they saw beheld a scene they said that they would never forget: Some thirty thousand cranes were waiting in the field for their evening dinner. Photography enthusiast
Josiane Dias from the Brazilian Embassy was so excited that she asked KKL-JNF photographer
Ancho Gosh to borrow his professional telephoto lens. Ancho graciously helped her mount his lens on her camera.
In the distance a tractor approached and slowly drove through the mass of cranes while discharging food for the birds. The cranes moved aside expectantly without any fear.
Moishe, the guide on the hideaway wagon, explained that that was the reason why the cranes allow the tractor-pulled-hideaway-wagon, with so many people on board, to get so close.
“The cranes in this site associate tractors with food and not with people. If you look out at a tractor in the nearby adjacent farms you also see a few cranes and other birds in tow as the farmer ploughs his field.”
At the tour’s conclusion, the diplomatic spouses returned to central Israel infused with new energy, just in time to greet their children who would be returning home from school.